Cannon Produced at Noble Foundry, Rome Georgia

lelliott19

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Noble Foundry Cannon.JPG
Cannon produced at Noble Brothers Foundry, Rome GA, May 1862.

Records indicate that this would have been one of seven 6-pound cannon produced by the Noble Foundry and delivered to the Richmond Arsenal.

Marked on the right trunion "Noble Brothers & Co" "Rome GA"; left trunion production date May 1862; muzzle inspector marks "L.J.S." (Capt. L.J. Smith ordnance inspector Noble Brothers Foundry); and on the cascabel "920" (#weight of the piece)

The cannon is currently listed for sale at $265,000 here http://www.shilohrelics.com/cgi-bin/Display_Item.asp?115142
trunion mark.JPG
 
The Noble Brothers Foundry was built by James Noble Sr. and his six sons (William, James Jr., Stephen, George, Samuel and John) around 1855 in Rome, Georgia. The brothers ordered a lathe from Pennsylvania around the same time. This massive lathe was brought by boat to Mobile, Alabama. From there it was transported by a river boat up the Coosa River to the first waterfall. Here the lathe was unpacked and hauled by horse and cart to the foundry at First and Broad Street.

The foundry manufactured steam boat engines, furnaces, and locomotives. In 1857, the foundry produced the first locomotive for the Rome Railroad, making this the first locomotive to be manufactured below Richmond.[citation needed] In 1861 the production of the foundry took on another role. The Confederate Government ordered the foundry to produce cannons and other war materials. A rifle plant was built by the brothers, but burned down before production got started. Jefferson Davis exempted the brothers from battlefield fighting. He proclaimed "... the 6 Noble brothers are exempt from the fighting as we have plenty of men to fight but few that can make cannons."

A Noble Brothers Foundry 954-pound cannon that was made around 1861 is on display outdoors in Naperville, IL. To see the cannon, head to Central Park off Benton Street any time of the year.

Even though the foundry's production of cannon had been halted by the Confederate government due to an investigation into improper manufacture of weapons at the facility, they continued output of other war-related materials, especially locomotives, attracted the attention of the Union Army and was a prime factor in the occupation of Rome by Sherman's troops in 1864.
 
View attachment 146200 Cannon produced at Noble Brothers Foundry, Rome GA, May 1862.

Records indicate that this would have been one of seven 6-pound cannon produced by the Noble Foundry and delivered to the Richmond Arsenal.

Marked on the right trunion "Noble Brothers & Co" "Rome GA"; left trunion production date May 1862; muzzle inspector marks "L.J.S." (Capt. L.J. Smith ordnance inspector Noble Brothers Foundry); and on the cascabel "920" (#weight of the piece)

The cannon is currently listed for sale at $265,000 here http://www.shilohrelics.com/cgi-bin/Display_Item.asp?115142
View attachment 146201
My daughter lives in Rome. There is a gigantic lathe there that produced these cannons.
 
I thought 6 pounders were obsolete by 1862. Not to say that they were not being used, by any means, but produced.... I know that Hood's corps had a few iron 6 pounders in the Atlanta Campaign, and he wrote off the loss of them in battle as "just some old iron 6 pound guns, not worth the loss of a man." (I'm paraphrasing, so please don't kill me.)

I just would think that they would be focused more on the preferred 12 pound Napoleons when producing guns
 
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